Calling all the Pregnant PS''ers

[Independent Gal]

Date: 9/29/2008 12:41:12 AM
Author: Kay

Lindsey, glad you have a new Dr. you like. I am RH negative too (DH is positive), and it is not a big deal. (It''s a pretty dumb mistake for your former Dr. to make though.) You will need 2 injections of Rhogam during your pregnancy, and a 3rd after delivery if the baby is RH+.


Kay

37 weeks, 5 days

Kay, Rhogam keeps you from develoing antibodies, but if you already have them, there''s not much you can do and it can be pretty dangerous. It sounds like Lindsay is saying she already has the antibodies. Let''s hope the doctor made a mistake with these new tests being run. I''m also Rh- and DH is positive, btw.

ETA: Oops. I see Lindsay already pointed this out.


Janine, any progress?

 

[Independent Gal]

Date: 9/29/2008 9:32:57 AM
Author: tiffanytwisted
Lindsey-For someone to get the wrong blood is actually a huge mistake. And honestly it wouldn''t have been the doctors fault. When someone needs a transfusion, blood is drawn from that person and sent to the lab to ''type and cross'' so they type your blood and then crossmatch it to a unit of blood. The lab would then send the blood to the nurse with a label stating the patient''s blood type and the type of blood in the unit (both with the type and the rh factor). That''s how it works in the US anyway. The doctor doesn''t specify the blood type when he orders blood to be given.

People who are rh+ can receive both rh- and rh+ blood. People who are rh- can only receive rh- blood.

That sure is a huge mistake! If I were Lindsay, and this had happened to me, I would sue the pants off the hospital. And I hate the lawsuit-happy culture in this country, but that''s SUCH a huge and dangerous mistake. It''s making me angry on Lindsay''s behalf just thinking about it.

 

[bee*]

Congrats on your new arrivals snlee and curly! Looking forward to seeing pics. Best of luck Janine!

 

[snlee]

Quick check in.

Janine, thinking of you! I wish you a fast and smooth labor & delivery!

I'll try to get a picture or two up today.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 9/29/2008 11:29:44 AM
Author: snlee
Quick check in.

Janine, thinking of you! I wish you a fast and smooth labor & delivery!

I''ll try to get a picture or two up today.

Pictures please please pretty please??

 

[Kay]

Date: 9/29/2008 9:21:55 AM
Author: *Lindsey*
Kay, unfortunately Rhogam injections won''t do anything for me. They prevent Rh negative mothers from creating antibodies to Rh positive blood, so that the mother''s blood won''t attack the positive blood with her antibodies. Unfortunately since I was transfused with positive blood, I have already created those antibodies. They give women Rhogam to prevent them from creating antibodies like I already have....

qtiekiki, we found out because my OB did a normal blood screen, but they discovered anti C and anti D (the Rhesus factor) antibodies. The only way to have those antibodies when you''re Rh negative is by being exposed to Rh positive blood, through previous childbirth or by way of transfusion. I have never been pregnant before, and my level of antibodies are pretty high, showing that I was exposed to a large number of positive blood cells. So yes, it was definitely from my transfusion unfortunately.

Gotcha, I guess I was reading too quickly and didn''t realize you had already developed antibodies. I am so mad for you that the hospital/lab made that kind of mistake with a transfusion. What will your Dr. do to deal with the antibodies during your pregnancy?

I hope I never need an emergency transfusion, because with O- blood my options are pretty limited (I would probably self-bank blood for a planned surgery.)

 

[Kay]

Date: 9/29/2008 11:47:09 AM
Author: dreamer_dachsie

Date: 9/29/2008 11:29:44 AM
Author: snlee
Quick check in.

Janine, thinking of you! I wish you a fast and smooth labor & delivery!

I''ll try to get a picture or two up today.

Pictures please please pretty please??

Oh yes, I am dying to see pictures.

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 9/29/2008 9:19:25 AM
Author: nycbkgirl
Kay- actually I even heard that ice cream isn''t even good lol! But I think it was just soft serve ..ugh 2 many things ...everything contains some bacteria but I rather stay away from certain ones at this crucial time. That glass of wine sounds so good right about now lol..im not much of an alcohol drinker...im more of the occasional cocktail fan but not being able 2 just makes u want it more! Im wonderin is decaf coffee ok or still not? I usually drink soy lattes but I''ve stopped everything completley for now.


Qt- yeh nothing like fresh salmon sushi..mmmmm...but I love miso soup so im still ok with that and the cooked rolls n chicken....is soy good for preggers?

Don''t worry NYC, ice cream is NOT BAD. The issue is only with soft serve, and again it''s the listeria thing. It''s not the ice cream itself but the fact that many of the machines aren''t cleaned regularly.

 

[neatfreak]

Hi all,

Quick check in from me. Went to the Dr. this morning, I am measuring 31 weeks (and am really 26), so he's happy. The boys heartbeats are getting SO LOUD on the Doppler! It's amazing how much they've increased in volume recently. I wonder if it's late enough that we could hear them with a stethoscope? We'll have to try.

Anyway, had the glucose test this morning. Not as bad as I expected, but that drink did make my stomach turn a bit. Yuck. No results on that yet, but they did do an iron check today and my doctor was VERY happy with my results, so that is great.

He also mentioned that he won't let me go past 38 weeks, so I guess that means that the latest the boys will be born is Dec. 20! Yay for two (hopefully) December babies AND double yay for them being born BEFORE New Years...those tax breaks for kids are GOOD!

Thinking about all you new mamas and the soon to be new mamas Janine and Kay!

 

[nycbkgirl]

Neatfreak- yeh I was sure it was the soft serve so I will stay away from that...
So exciting about the heartbeats and the delivery date being so sooon!!! I will hear my first beat on oct8 ..not sure if u actually hear it or not but nonetheless very exciting stuff! So yay for twinkies comin soon!

 

[Independent Gal]

Date: 9/29/2008 2:35:26 PM
Author: neatfreak
Hi all,


Quick check in from me. Went to the Dr. this morning, I am measuring 31 weeks (and am really 26), so he''s happy. The boys heartbeats are getting SO LOUD on the Doppler! It''s amazing how much they''ve increased in volume recently. I wonder if it''s late enough that we could hear them with a stethoscope? We''ll have to try.


Anyway, had the glucose test this morning. Not as bad as I expected, but that drink did make my stomach turn a bit. Yuck. No results on that yet, but they did do an iron check today and my doctor was VERY happy with my results, so that is great.


He also mentioned that he won''t let me go past 38 weeks, so I guess that means that the latest the boys will be born is Dec. 20! Yay for two (hopefully) December babies AND double yay for them being born BEFORE New Years...those tax breaks for kids are GOOD!

Thinking about all you new mamas and the soon to be new mamas Janine and Kay!

This is AMAZING NEWS!!! Super-twin-momma! Great job! It is very inspiring to hear about you and JAS and Jen being so successful incubating these big healthy twin babies and keeping healthy yourselves.

OK, so can I ask what your weight is at 26 weeks, having grown such big fab-o bebes?

And probably-january-twin-mom here is sooo jealous about the tax breaks.

That''ll pay for a bugaboo or two (or 6).

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 9/29/2008 3:22:05 PM
Author: Independent Gal

Date: 9/29/2008 2:35:26 PM

Author: neatfreak

Hi all,



Quick check in from me. Went to the Dr. this morning, I am measuring 31 weeks (and am really 26), so he''s happy. The boys heartbeats are getting SO LOUD on the Doppler! It''s amazing how much they''ve increased in volume recently. I wonder if it''s late enough that we could hear them with a stethoscope? We''ll have to try.



Anyway, had the glucose test this morning. Not as bad as I expected, but that drink did make my stomach turn a bit. Yuck. No results on that yet, but they did do an iron check today and my doctor was VERY happy with my results, so that is great.



He also mentioned that he won''t let me go past 38 weeks, so I guess that means that the latest the boys will be born is Dec. 20! Yay for two (hopefully) December babies AND double yay for them being born BEFORE New Years...those tax breaks for kids are GOOD!

Thinking about all you new mamas and the soon to be new mamas Janine and Kay!

This is AMAZING NEWS!!! Super-twin-momma! Great job! It is very inspiring to hear about you and JAS and Jen being so successful incubating these big healthy twin babies and keeping healthy yourselves.


OK, so can I ask what your weight is at 26 weeks, having grown such big fab-o bebes?


And probably-january-twin-mom here is sooo jealous about the tax breaks.

That''ll pay for a bugaboo or two (or 6).

Aww thanks Indy! I have to say I am relieved that my doc won''t let me go past 38 weeks. I''m already getting uncomfortable, so that would be misery.

You can totally ask what my weight is but I''ll never tell!

But since I know you meant weight GAIN, I have gained about 32 lbs. And I am in my 27th week. Initially I was "behind", then I caught up about weeks 14-16, then stayed pretty steady at about 1lb per week for awhile, then jumped up quite a bit during weeks 20-25. Now I have only gained about 2 lbs in the past 2 weeks, so I seem to be back on that track now. Wacky weight!

 

[Independent Gal]

Date: 9/29/2008 3:07:14 PM
Author: nycbkgirl
Neatfreak- yeh I was sure it was the soft serve so I will stay away from that...

So exciting about the heartbeats and the delivery date being so sooon!!! I will hear my first beat on oct8 ..not sure if u actually hear it or not but nonetheless very exciting stuff! So yay for twinkies comin soon!

NYCB, by the way, if your scan next week shows two bebes, I highly recommend a couple of books I got about twin pregnancies. One is primarily about nutrition, which is very important for twins (growing them to good sizes is a good sized challenge! which is why Neatfreak is super-momma!). The other is a comprehensive book about everything weird and wonderful twin-wise. It covers everything from tests you may be offered to labor and birth options, to post-partum stuff, but specifically for twins (because everything really is different with twins). Plus, it''s written in a positive upbeat way so that even the ''scary'' stuff seems more manageable! She always casts things "on the bright side" but tells you when to call the doctor too.

Barbara Luke "When You''re Expecting Twins, Triplets, Quads..." (she''s a nutritionist / Ph.D. with a crazy long list of peer reviewed stuff in scientific journals... very reputable)

Nancy Bowers "The Multiple Pregnancy Sourcebook"

 

[Independent Gal]

Date: 9/29/2008 3:39:07 PM
Author: neatfreak

You can totally ask what my weight is but I''ll never tell!

But since I know you meant weight GAIN, I have gained about 32 lbs. And I am in my 27th week. Initially I was ''behind'', then I caught up about weeks 14-16, then stayed pretty steady at about 1lb per week for awhile, then jumped up quite a bit during weeks 20-25. Now I have only gained about 2 lbs in the past 2 weeks, so I seem to be back on that track now. Wacky weight!

Heheheheh. I meant "weight gain".

That sounds GREAT NF. You''re my idol.

Hey speaking of wacky, while I was just writing that, a chunk of one of my teeth chipped off. WTF?!?!

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 9/29/2008 3:43:33 PM
Author: Independent Gal


Hey speaking of wacky, while I was just writing that, a chunk of one of my teeth chipped off. WTF?!?!

Are the babies sapping your calcium already?

 

[neatfreak]

Glucose test results are in and...


Totally normal. Woo-hoo. I am so happy not to have to drink that nasty orange stuff again. YAY!

 

[nycbkgirl]

Indy- thanx! I will def. Order those books once oct 8 comes n goes and I am calmer..so nervous n anxious...just so many emotions. Appreciate all your advice and always keep it comin

Neatfreak- yay for good test results! We love 2 hear all good news.

 

[pavelover]

Date: 9/29/2008 5:02:39 PM
Author: neatfreak
Glucose test results are in and...


Totally normal. Woo-hoo. I am so happy not to have to drink that nasty orange stuff again. YAY!

Good news Neatfreak!!! So glad you are done with that. I think Im gonna do mine next week when I meet my new ob(well at least get the lab slip). I will be glad to get it out of the way. BTW question for you- have you been having any trouble with swollen ankles? I flew last week and was puffy which I wasn''t surprised about, but then a few days later, after work, my ankles were pretty big!! I was shocked. I thought it was kindof early for that although I kind of remember Kay was having this problem earlier on? Just curious since we are around the same dates.

Hope everyone else is doing well! Things are moving quick here as usual! Congratulations to all the new preggos!
talk to you all soon!

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 9/29/2008 5:42:31 PM
Author: pavelover

Date: 9/29/2008 5:02:39 PM

Author: neatfreak

Glucose test results are in and...



Totally normal. Woo-hoo. I am so happy not to have to drink that nasty orange stuff again. YAY!

Good news Neatfreak!!! So glad you are done with that. I think Im gonna do mine next week when I meet my new ob(well at least get the lab slip). I will be glad to get it out of the way. BTW question for you- have you been having any trouble with swollen ankles? I flew last week and was puffy which I wasn't surprised about, but then a few days later, after work, my ankles were pretty big!! I was shocked. I thought it was kindof early for that although I kind of remember Kay was having this problem earlier on? Just curious since we are around the same dates.


Hope everyone else is doing well! Things are moving quick here as usual! Congratulations to all the new preggos!

talk to you all soon!

I haven't but I know many women have. One thing to just be aware of is that if you suddenly get puffy all over (esp. face and hands) and/or gain a lot of weight suddenly you will want to call your doc to make sure you aren't developing preeclampsia. Otherwise I think it's totally normal. But really because everything seems to come a lot earlier for me I don't really know what's normal during certain times for a single pregnancy ya know?

 

[ljmorgan]

tiffanytwisted, yup I''m aware it''s a huge mistake. I wasn''t blaming my doctor -- I guess people are confused when I said "MD Anderson" screwed up my transfusion -- I was referring to MD Anderson Cancer Center (the hospital) not an actual doctor. I definitely don''t blame my surgeon at all, I realize that the mistake was likely made somewhere in a lab or a mixup.

Indy no kidding about the lawsuit. My husband and I are waiting for the rest of the blood tests to come back, and to meet with the specialist. Then we''ll request all of my records from MD Anderson. I am very angry about this, because I feel like such a simple mistake has such large ramifications for me. Not only for babies, but for my life. If I were ever in an accident and transfused with Rh+ blood again, my antibodies would now attack the new blood and I could be in serious, serious trouble. All because of a mixup... blah!

Kay man, you really do have a tough blood type!

Self banking is definitely a great idea, and I totally understand how you''re afraid of an emergency transfusion situation. It is very scary!

As for me, the doctors cannot do anything about the antibodies I have. Unfortunately at the birth, I would just be exposed to more, increasing my antibodies. This is what happens to Rh- gals who don''t get rhogam -- after they become sensitized, each subsequent birth becomes more dangerous. I''ve been referred to a maternal fetal specialist who will monitor my antibody levels each week, and will do a US of the baby each week after 14 weeks. so at least I will see the baby a lot! They can use some sort of US to determine blood flow/pressure in the baby (something like that) to see if the baby is becoming anemic (means my antibodies are destroying its red blood cells.) if the baby is suffering from anemia, they can do in utero blood transfusions for the baby. They will also want to deliver the baby as soon as possible, my doctor said depending on the level of anemia, they''d try to wait until 36 weeks. I think the baby''s problems depends on your antibody levels, my doctor said mine were high, but I don''t know what the scale is like. I''m sure the specialist can explain a lot more of this when I meet with him.

Neatfreak congrats on the glucose test! One less thing to worry about!

I can''t believe all of you gals carrying twins so well -- very inspiring!

 

[Blenheim]

Neatfreak - good job, mama! My midwife generally tries to use the fetuscope (fetalscope? too lazy to look up what it''s called

) from the 20 week visit on, so you could probably use one of those to listen to the heartbeats. Not sure about a stethoscope though.

Nycbkgirl - Caffeine''s fine in limited doses (more than about 2 cups of regular coffee per day corresponds with a slightly higher chance of m/c). Decaf is made in different ways, the more common of which uses chemicals. I asked my midwife about the chemicals used, and she wasn''t worried at all. And shortly after I asked her, I developed a coffee aversion.

My m/w and I have similar attitudes about nutrition, though - I''m trying to focus on eating a variety of good, fresh (minimally processed) foods rather than focusing on what I shouldn''t eat. I am staying away from things I truly should not intake (alcohol comes to mind). Of course, this emphasis was harder earlier on when sometimes the only thing that sounded edible was mac and cheese, but I did get hubby to make it from scratch at least.

Soy... I''ve read something about it not being super in large quantities - potentially causing reproductive problems and breast cancer in offspring - but I don''t think it''s anything to worry about unless you drink a lot of soy milk or eat a lot of tofu or other soy products. If you''re vegetarian or consume a lot of soy for other reasons, I''d definitely do research as to your comfort level regarding amounts, and other alternatives there would be. (If you google "soy pregnancy" there are a lot of hits.) If you''re just wondering because it''s in some dishes that you occasionally consume, I really wouldn''t worry. (This is early, but you may also want to do research if you''re thinking of using soy-based formula.)

 

[nycbkgirl]

Was wonderin if anyone does glue or gel/powder manicure...im not sure if I should cut them off and do regular manicure or if its safe to do?

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 9/30/2008 8:21:52 AM
Author: nycbkgirl
Was wonderin if anyone does glue or gel/powder manicure...im not sure if I should cut them off and do regular manicure or if its safe to do?

I don''t do them so I don''t know if it''s "safe". But personally I would stay OUT of salons that do those things for the smell/chemicals floating around alone. YUCK. It turns my stomach and makes me dizzy even when I''m not pregnant, so I can''t imagine what it would do to my poor preggo body.

 

[nycbkgirl]

Neatfreak- I do wear a mask when im in the salons and im not in there for too long so I don''t think goin once every 2 wks for an hour would really be bad ...how do u do ur nails n toes then?? Do u do them yourself? I can''t b without it...but am worried about it now

 

[Courtneylub]

9 weeks pregnant and traveling for work is not fun! I''m so exhausted. Luckily I haven''t gotten sick or felt sick on the flights.

nycbkgirl - I kind of feel the same way. If I got sick, I would know everything is normal. But some pregnancies just don''t cause it. I feel the nausea a few times, but haven''t thrown up. Has anyone felt the extreme dizziness? Like you''re on a boat? That is the worst!

Kay - I just learned about the unpasteurized cheese....like cream cheese right? I love cream cheese.

I''ll admit, I''m having a half to one cup of coffee per day. My doc and other mommy friends say it''s perfectly fine. I avoid tea and sodas...it''s just that one cup a day. As for sushi, I''m not really craving the raw stuff which is nuts because I usually love it. I''ve been sticking to the CA rolls and miso soup like you all.

Oh and congrats to snlee and curly!! I know I''m late!

 

[ljmorgan]

Hey Courtneylub, no need to forgo your beloved cream cheese. Any cream cheese that you can buy in the grocery store is pasteurized, and safe.

Here''s a good reference on safe/unsafe cheeses during pregnancy:
http://www.babycentre.co.uk/pregnancy/nutrition/foodsafety/cheeseexpert/

 

[mela lu]

NF - great news on the glucose test results and not going past 38 weeks! Harroooo!

Kay - you''re so close! I''d love to see pics of the nursery. It sounds GORGEOUS!
Lindsey - I''m so sorry that you''re having to deal with this blood thing. It''s such a shame especially as this should be such a happy time for you

. Hang in there.
NYCBK - I think you have to do what ever you are comfortable with

. Everyone is different, and only you can be you''re own boss. (re: nails). I paint my nails religiously with nailpolish, but I know some people don''t even feel comfortable with that. Everyone has their own threshold.

Courtney - so sorry you''re so tired! Boo. Rest up whenever you can...

I have crazy symptoms this go around. WAY more intense than my last (failed) PG. I am suffering from: extreme nausea, big sore boobs, extremely sensitive sense of smell (hence the extreme nausea), emotional, tired, absentminded, food aversions and zit.

and I''m HAPPY for them!

It gives me comfort when I get those moments of fear and panic about losing another baby.

Last night I drempt I was losing clumps of tissue and stuffs. My dream never finished, but I woke up with the ''fear'' of m/c. I suppose that''s normal at this stage

6 weeks 3 days.

 

[ljmorgan]

mela, that is right, ENJOY those symptoms! I am so happy for you. Darn those crazy pregnancy dreams. You are going to do great!

Do you want to know what I dreamed last night? That I had... two black babies, which would be very difficult considering my race and my husband''s.

Not only that, but one of the children was apparently half Elton John''s, and he had used my eggs as a donor. Oh, and both of the children were mine, but I had amnesia, and every day I woke up I had forgotten they were my children, and I felt bad for my husband. Just like in that movie with Adam Sandlier and Drew Barrymore. Now THAT was a crazy dream last night. I was very relieved to wake up knowing I was 9 weeks preggo with a singleton, and as far as I know, Elton John hasn''t acquired any of my eggs...

 

[mela lu]

Bah ha ha. Thats a funny/crazy dream.

 

[lisa1.01fvs1]

Congratulations Snlee and Curly!! I am so late to this party........

Pictures, I need pictures!

I have to ask, Mela did you get the Brazillian?

DD, your bed still looks so comfy! No need to clean up on my behalf! Awesome belly, I think you look knocked-up but then again I've been following your progress for weeks. In no time you will certainly POP and no one will think otherwise.

We had our NT scan yesterday and everything looks great!

Fetus is measuring right on target and we could still see the vanishing twin in there.

The sac is still there and there is a clump of cells that look like a ball on the bottom, there is a faint trace of placenta w/ no blood flowing. It was weird.

So gender news: we have conflicting reports. Ultrasound tech thinks it's a GIRL! Perinatologist thinks it's a BOY!

I'm inclined to go w/ the US tech but who knows? We saw the 2 lines but at this stage they tell me it's early. Olivia bared all for us at 12 weeks so what's up?

We scheduled an amnio in 5 weeks.

Oh and I weigh 5lbs less at this point then in the last preganancy - yay! I think I started out thinner anyway.

I can't help myself and have craved all types of deli meats! I normally never eat this stuff but now can't get enough and I know I'm supposed to steam it all - eww but I don't. And hot dogs, gotta have that neon yellow mustard. What a blimp.

12.3 wks.